Sunday, December 30, 2007

coming back to earth

In my yarn swatch story, here's the next installment. (If you aren't interested in this, skip to the next paragraph!) This here is O-wool Classic, which I heartily recommend. It's a flexible 'plain vanilla' fine wool yarn, which means I knit it up on #8's and saw it could be knitted down on #6's or up to #9's or more with ease. By fine wool, I mean soft, and it says it's Merino, but not as fine as extra-fine Merino. It's got spring and cottony softness, and it smells a bit of spinning oil. When it's washed, it puffs up into this lush soft hand that's hard to beat. It comes in lots of colors, it's Organic, which is a great thing on many levels, and this swatch is knit using Elizabeth Zimmermann's Snail Hat concept, only I made it into a wee mini-skirt. This, and all its swatch buddies, are now winging their way back to the folks who need the swatches for the TNNA convention. I still have the remainder of these balls of yarn to play with, and I'm looking forward to that!

In other news, I had the dreaded CT scan on Friday, and it was surprisingly easy. Medical technology has really improved in the last 9 years. The comparable test I had often as a kid and into my twenties was called an IVP. This description of the test online is reasonably correct, except for the "painless" part. At least for me, those X-rays and the injection of dye ended up taking quite a while (several hours) and I had to fast, often holding uncomfortable positions in a cold room, for a long time. The worst part was when the radiologists looking at my X-rays would start literally yelling down the hall, "Hey Joe! Come check this out! This is pretty interesting..." Many doctors would congregate in the little radiology booth, checking out my plumbing while I lay there on the X Ray table, dang hungry and thirsty and feeling embarrassed. (while I look entirely like a regular person on the outside, those kidney defects are a bit uhh, unusual inside, but...they work.)

Anyhow, the CT scan took an hour from beginning to end, and showed that things appear to be working on my insides. Whew, what a relief! However, medicine is still an art, not entirely a science. Nobody can explain why I've had lingering pain or why it took so long to get better. At the moment when the specialist suggested just one more procedure, just to do more research...I hesitated. He was called away to the hospital's operating room for an emergency. I was relieved. I'm slowly getting better on my own. I think, for now, I'll stick with what's worked. I've had enough of feeling like the medical equivalent of a tough riddle. (Yup, I stump the doctors...) caption: Here, Sally the dog demonstrates what is working for me!

Rest. Lots of liquids. Good food. Lots of staring into space, reading interesting books (I recommend Naomi Ragen's books) and doing minimal amounts of work. I imagine this old fashioned approach does work sometimes.

The professor suggested an ice cream cone to celebrate the success of all this medical testing on Friday, but even the local ice cream shop is closed for the unknown holiday of Dec. 28th. Grumble... Good thing we had treats at home. I mean, I'm all for religious holidays, I take them very seriously, even as an interested observer if, like Christmas, it isn't my holiday, but closing the ice cream shop until after New Year's? humph.

Some of those treats, which I've saved up for this time of year included Hill Creek Fiber Studio's new looms, which will be super for working up small squares and triangles. I'm thinking cotton napkins! At the top of this photo, you can see the silk scarves I bought. I wore them around the house. Nothing like a little silk to make me feel elegant while fending off winter doldrums. (dashing with sweat pants, let me tell you...)

Yesterday we ventured out for Greek food and to run a few errands as part of the effort to increase my strength after all this couch sitting. I scored 3 cashmere sweaters for $30 a piece. OK, I have a sweater fetish, I couldn't help myself. Two v-necks--one dark blue and one black, and a black hoodie. Wow. Don't worry, I spared you that photo. It was, umm, dark.

In a few days, I will rise up, off the couch, and Sally, off her dog bed, because we're going to visit our folks in NYC and DC. I'm focusing a lot of energy on being able to handle the trip. I hope it will be a lark! Another swatch story and other adventures to come in my next installment. In the meanwhile, just in case I don't post that in time, have a super, happy and healthy New Year!

Glad the docs found nothing worrisome, but it's frustrating (in my experience) not to have answers. But, since you're feeling better, that's what matter. I love the swatch, and I'm not a knitter. I can see it on the head of an infant or toddler even if it's a skirt to you!

You had a heck of a lot of stress this year. You may just NEED to sleep, read, eat comfort foods for longer than seems reasonable. The older I get, the more I think rest is a good thing.

I second the thought about airport wheelchairs. I used a set for one trip post-surgery and was given a memorable (in a good way) ride through the back corridors of under-construction Logan Airport. It was a kick!

About Me

Joanne Seiff enjoys making things from scratch; she's been knitting since she was four or five and spinning since she was 12. Joanne is a writer, knitwear designer and educator. She's often walking Sadie and Sally (her bird dogs), spinning, knitting, gardening, cooking, and spending time outdoors with her twins and Jeff, her absent-minded biology professor husband, who studies butterfly genetics.